Sympathy
by wintergreen tears
Summary: Sympathy: (s m p -th-ee) 1) Mutual understanding or affection arising from this relationship or affinity. 2) The act or power of sharing the feelings of another. 3) A feeling of loyalty; allegiance.
1. Defying All Odds

**Disclamer**: If I owned Naruto, I would so _seriously _not be here...

Hullo again. This here is officially my first story posted that _isn't _a one-shot. Whoo-hoo,go me .

But, uh, yeah. This story is AU, and it is how I imagined it would go if they became friends as children. I liked how it came out, and I hope you enjoy it.

**Chapter 1: Defying All Odds**

**-----------------------**

A break from schedule. An adventure. At least, in the eyes of six year old Uchiha Sasuke, that was what this unusual change in routine looked like.

Class at the academy had just ended for the day, and this was his free time. An hour and a half, all to himself, to do whatever he wanted, although he usually trained. Only, today, he had been confronted, interrupted, if you will.

By none other than the outcast of Konoha, Uzamaki Naruto.

But why was that so unusual? Uzamaki Naruto had talked to him before, so why should this be any different?

Because this time, Naruto was actually asking, nicely, no less, for training. And Sasuke, _Uchiha Sasuke_, the child every parent wished for, _was breaking a rule._

He had said yes.

Which is how Uchiha Sasuke and Uzamaki Naruto ended up _together_, _deep_ in the forest, throwing kunai at a practice dummy they had _borrowed_ from an academy store room.

Okay. So he was breaking about three rules.

At the moment, Sasuke was watching Naruto throw at the dummy, trying to figure out what Naruto was doing wrong.

And he _was _doing _something _wrong, because the first six kunai that Naruto threw completely missed their mark. Well, actually, they completely missed the dummy altogether.

"Stop! I figured it out. But yeesh! Really, how did you get this far at all!" Sasuke asked Naruto, standing up, and sounding exasperated.

Naruto looked torn, unable to decide what expression to show on his face – either the loud-mouthed grin he normally used, or the pained expression that belonged there.

But before he could choose, Sasuke blushed, thinking of the pain it caused him when his father talked about his efforts like that, and feeling ashamed of himself. "Sorry, I didn't mean it. But your grip is off. That's what's wrong. Mine was when I started, too." Thinking back on it, Sasuke blushed even harder. "It was fixed. Painfully."

"Well at least you had someone to fix it," Naruto grumbled, looking down.

And then, in that second it took Sasuke to breathe, he had made a decision that would have taken aback every adult in Konoha, and befriended Naruto once and for all. "And know so do you, dumbass," he retorted with a grin – and breaking a fourth rule by cussing.

Naruto looked up cautiously, his past making him untrusting, until he saw that Sasuke actually meant it. Then he answered "Glad to hear it, jerk," grinning with real happiness for the first time in a long while.

And so started their friendship, defying all odds, and strong enough to last through the scolding they got for _borrowing _the dummy from the academy.

And then for going out so far alone in the woods.

And after that, practically being dragged apart by the older members of the Uchiha clan, which was followed by a lecture on behavior for Sasuke and many glares and declarations of worthlessness for Naruto.

And through all the mischief and trouble they would get into as time went on.

**About 7 month's later.**

"She's looking at you again," Naruto told Sasuke, casually leaning back for a better view of Haruno Sakura, the "she" he was referring to. "I don't care, bonehead," Sasuke muttered, but it was ruined with a blush.

Naruto grinned, asking "Then why are you blushing?" Squirming and blushing more, Sasuke grumbled a bit before answering. "It makes me feel…self-conscious."

"Ha ha! Someone has a cru-ush!" Naruto teased, knowing that it wasn't true.

"I DO NOT!" Sasuke burst out, taking the bait.

"Uzamaki! Uchiha! Quiet down, and pay attention to the lesson! I'm sick and tired of this. The next time I have to tell someone off, they get a detention!"

Naruto took his que. "Hey, jerk, watch a master at work!" he whispered at Sasuke as he leaned towards the kid on his other side.

Which happened to be the sleeping Nara Shikamaru.

After a few seconds of doing something to Shikamaru's face that Sasuke couldn't see, Naruto leaned back to his original position.

"5…4…3…2…"

Shikamaru snored. Loudly.

The teacher snapped. "NARA! That is IT!" "Wha-?" Shikamaru was finally roused by the yelling of his name. "Detention! Today, after school! And that goes for _you_, too, Inuzaka!" That stopped Kiba's loud laughter up short.

Naruto grinned at Sasuke, and he grinned back. Then they both dropped their grins and faced the front of the room when the teacher glared in their direction. But as the teacher returned to the lesson, content that the interruptions had been dealt with, they continued their original conversation.

Sakura _was _watching Sasuke, like Naruto had observed earlier, but she was also watching him.

They were such unlikely friends. It had been a shock when they went off to train that day. Sakura had been amazed. But what was even stranger was the friendship they had developed and kept.

"Dead last" Naruto had gotten better, and the "perfect" Sasuke had changed, and now even participated in pranks, like the one just pulled on Shikamaru.

Okay, so that _had _been funny – Sakura had even laughed, albeit _quietly_, so she didn't get in trouble.

But that wasn't the point! Uchiha Sasuke had pulled a similar prank on Kiba two days ago! _Sasuke!_

And actually, that one had been quite a bit more extensive, considering Kiba had been _awake_…Sakura laughed in spite of herself, just thinking about it.

The teacher paused, mid-word, to turn and yell at her. "Haruno! I expected no less from Nara and Inuzaka, but from _you!_ You know have earned yourself detention, too!"

"Ah, man, mom's gonna kill me!" Sakura muttered, feeling cross. But she supposed she was excused for that, considering the thought of spending two hours alone with the spazzy teacher, the lazy Shikamaru, and the loud and bragging Kiba. It looked rather gloomy…

Suddenly, there was a very loud burp, emanating from somewhere in the vicinity of where Naruto and Sasuke were sitting. It was followed by the thump of Naruto falling of his chair with laughter.

The teacher nearly had an apoplexy.

As it was, a vein started throbbing in his forehead, and his left eye started twitching. "UZAMAKI! UCHIHA! It pains me to have to shame such a worthy name as your family's, but you BOTH have DETENTION!"

Having already observed that they got themselves into this on purpose, Sakura had just one thought.

_Well. _This _is going to be intresting._


	2. Curiosity Killed the Cat

**Chapter 2: Curiosity Killed the Cat**

**-------------------------------------------------------**

Curiosity is a dangerous thing.

Take Madame Curie, for example. She was a scientist. When she discovered Radium, she was curious. So she studied this new element, trying to discover all of its secrets, its uses. She found that it had many functions, one of which is that it can help cure some deadly diseases, including cancer.

Madame Curie died. She died of cancer, caused by the same attribute of radium that helps cure it. Madame Curie was curious, and in the end, it killed her. But not everyone knows this.

Haruno Sakura was curious.

She knew she would be worrying about being in trouble for getting detention later, but right now, all she wanted was to figure out the puzzle of the friendship of Uchiha Sasuke, and Uzamaki Naruto.

What made them tick?

Class had ended, and detention had started, about a half hour ago. The teacher has gathered them at the bottom of the room, in front of his desk, to give then a very long, very _loud _speech about "ninja behavior."

Being the good student that she was, Sakura paid perfect attention.

Okay, so she didn't. It was really hard to concentrate on what he was saying when his eye was still twitching in a very distracting way.

After that, he sent them back up to the seats in his line of site, which placed Shikamaru and Kiba to her left and Sasuke and Naruto to her right, and all of them very close together.

Sakura was getting annoyed by the boys' antics. Currently, Shikamaru was complaining about how troublesome this was. He _had _been sleeping, until Kiba had nailed him in the back of the head with his bouncy ball. As to the bouncy ball, Kiba was still playing with it, and so was his puppy, Akamaru.

Naruto and Sasuke were having a burping contest.

_BOYS! _Sakura was ready to scream. Not only that, but the teacher wouldn't let them move, so she couldn't question the pair of burping idiots.

_Wait._ Sakura looked around with a sudden realization. _The teacher's gone! _But when she tried to get up, he came back, with a cup of coffee in his hand.

"That's the _last _thing Mr. Spazoid needs," Shikamaru muttered, glaring at the cup.

Sasuke snorted.

Moving his glare to the duo on the other side of Sakura, Shikamaru asked suspiciously "What did you do?" Sasuke didn't answer, but Naruto grinned mischievously and replied "Tell you in a few minutes."

Sakura looked form the Naruto to the teacher, to Sasuke, to the cup of coffee in question. _I wonder how many teachers drank coffee from the teachers' lounge today…_

It was a slow few minutes.

Bounce. Burp. Complain. Burp. Bounce. Complain. Bounce. Burp. Burp burp burp.

Now all four boys were participating in the vulgar competition.

After listening Shikamaru burp the ABC's, and being impressed in spite of herself, Sakura's mind wandered. _I wander how loud _I _could burp… _Her mouth opened before her brain worked, and she let one rip.

After a second of shocked silence, ruined by the spluttering of the teacher, Naruto whistled, and Kiba clapped.

Sakura blushed a dull red that clashed badly with her hair, and snuck a side glance at Sasuke.

He was smirking. "Beaten by a girl."

Facing the front of the room, her cheeks now much brighter, Sakura watched the teacher stand up to yell at them. "SUCH RUDE, DISGUSTING, BEHA-Vi…or…" And with that, he promptly fell over his desk, fast asleep.

"Eh…heh heh…" Kiba uttered some startled laughter into the silence. Shikamaru just shook his head, watching the remnants of the coffee seeping across the desk and onto the floor.

Naruto and Sasuke were grinning. "We can leave now," Naruto told them. "We spiked the coffee with sleeping pills this morning."

Sakura looked shocked. "So all the teachers are… asleep?" she asked.

"All the ones that needed a caffeine booster today."

Sakura watched as Kiba and Shikamaru walked away, skirting the spreading puddle of spiked coffee. They were going about their normal lives, one still complaining, the other still playing with his puppy. As the other two boys left, the two of interest, Sakura trailed them, her mind forming questions, but her mouth not functioning.

Sitting on their favorite swings, Naruto and Sasuke watched as Sakura finally tried to catch up to them.

"Wonder what she wants," Sasuke murmured, anther blush rising in his face.

Naruto laughed. "It's not that hard to guess. The same thing all the girls want."

Sasuke punched him.

_Look at them._ Sakura thought as she got closer. _They fight and smile at the same time. They _look _completely opposite. And they're best friends. Why?_

Now she was standing in front of them. Sasuke was blushing. Normally, she would have been, too. But not today.

Today, she was curious.

"Why?" she suddenly blurted out.

The boys looked at each other, both a little confused. "Why what?" Naruto asked, because Sakura was still just staring at them.

"Why are you friends? You're both so _different_! You were 'perfect,' and you were 'dead last!' Sasuke, you come from a well known, well respected family, and Naruto, you… well, you're _Naruto_!" She stopped, out of breath and huffing.

Naruto and Sasuke stared at her dumbfounded. Whatever they had been expecting the pink haired, sensible girl to say, it hadn't been _this_.

Then Sasuke smirked, finally catching her last statement. "Well, I should _hope _Naruto is Naruto. I would hate to find he's really some rabid fangirl in disguise."

It was Sakura's turn to be taken aback. Then, she realized with a start that he was joking.

She glared at him.

Ignoring her reaction, Sasuke turned to Naruto, the smirk still on his face. "Why are we friends? Because he's a dope." Naruto smirked back. "And he's a stuck up prick." They both turned to Sakura, grinning wide.

"And we feel like it."

Sakura blinked twice. "Oh," she responded meekly. "I guess… I guess I never thought of it like that…"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "For such a smart person, you're really dumb sometimes." Sasuke snorted. "Well, for such an idiot, sometimes you're way to smart. But that's not the point."

Naruto couldn't decide to be offended or pleased at Sasuke's mixed compliment, but he was being ignored, so it didn't really matter.

"You got to ask your question, but was it really worth detention?" Sasuke looked at Sakura oddly. "Or was that actually an accident?"

Sakura's blush finally caught up to her. Sasuke laughed.

Naruto, finally tuning in, looked at Sakura, expressionless. "Was it worth it?"

"Huh?"

"Was it worth it to get detention and be in trouble? All so you could ask a simple question?"

Sakura took a second to think about it, and then shrugged.

"Curiosity killed the cat."

Naruto smiled at her. She smiled back.

Sasuke motioned for her to "pull up a swing," and Naruto told her "There's a second part to that saying, you know. Everyone always forgets it." "Really? What is it?"

"And satisfaction brought it back."

And that was the beginning of a friendship between Uzamaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura.

It lasted past when they all turned seven, with three _unusual_ parties and the whole next year at the academy – pity on their teacher.

And then they turned eight, and shortly after, something happened that could be the end of everything.


End file.
